Olympics opens after delay of one year
After a yearlong delay, the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games finally kicked off on Friday at Japan’s National Stadium with mixed public sentiment — many are questioning the logic of holding the Games amid a still-raging pandemic while others are yearning to see inspiring sporting moments.
In a display of pomp, parades, oath-taking and flame-lighting, the opening ceremony looked very different compared with others in the history of the Games as it took place in front of thousands of empty seats.
At 8 pm local time, Japanese Emperor Naruhito appeared at the National Stadium to mark the official opening of the Games, but did not make a speech in deference to the COVID19 pandemic.
The 61-year-old monarch had earlier expressed concerns about the spread of infections at the Games.
After the playing of the Japanese national anthem, a moment of silence took place to remember the global victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although the regulations governing participation in the Games are strict, more than 100 people linked to the Olympics had tested positive for COVID-19 so far.
“The pandemic forced us to be apart. To keep our distance from each other. To stay away even from our loved ones. This separation made this tunnel so dark,” said International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach. “But today, wherever in the world you may be, we are united in sharing this moment together. The Olympic flame makes this light shine brighter for all of us.”
Japanese tennis superstar Naomi Osaka, who was chosen to light the cauldron, entered the stadium from the darkness of a tunnel. Then, all of the performers who had appeared in the ceremony gathered together holding sunflowers, with which they created a path to welcome and guide the torchbearer to the cauldron.
In the much-anticipated parade of nations, around 6,000 athletes from more than 200 countries and regions took part, including 431 Chinese athletes, the biggest-ever team to represent China at an overseas Olympics.
Greek athletes marched first in the parade as a tradition to pay respect to the birthplace of the Olympics and, for the first time, the Refugee Olympic Team — comprising refugees from several countries — entered the stadium second, behind Greece.
China entered the stadium in the 110th place, according to this year’s rule that the order of countries would be based on the names of the nations in the Japanese language, going in alphabetical order.
Women’s volleyball star Zhu Ting and taekwondo Olympic champion Zhao Shuai were the flag-bearers of the Chinese delegation.
“It’s an incredible honor to be selected as a flag bearer,” Zhu said in a statement, who became China’s first female flag-bearer at a Summer Olympic Games.
A local citizen named Akemi Usami, who is in her 70s and had a vivid memory of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, told China Daily that despite the many problems faced by this year’s Games, “the athleticism will be thrilling”.
“I remembered being glued to the new color television of my family during the 1964 Games and I am still burning with excitement about the Games right now,” Usami said.
“Watching the athletes competing for excellency makes you hope,” she added.